July 31, 2013​Five years ago, Yessenia and Alberto Garcia and their newborn twin sons were living in a one-room rental in a relative’s house. Their dream of owning a home couldn’t have been more out of reach. But now that dream is becoming a reality with a little help from Wakeland’s Creating Opportunities for Resident Enrichment (CORE) Program.

Yessenia, a 24-year-old homemaker, and Alberto, a 23-year-old fabricator for EDCO, are residents at Wakeland’s Los Vecinos property who first came to the CORE Program to learn how they could take steps toward buying a home. With the guidance of CORE Program Coordinator Soraya Cordero, they began contributing toward a savings account and sticking to a budget that would maximize their savings. The money they set aside, combined with their tax refunds, has grown into a nest egg that they are now planning to use to buy a home in Lemon Grove.“For years, our dream has been to own a house where my husband could be outside with the boys playing ball and I would come out with the lemonade,” says Yessenia. “That’s our fairy tale and now it looks like it’s going to come true.”

She says she and Alberto had no idea whether they would ever be able to buy a home when they first started the program, but after their first meeting she turned to her husband and said, “This is going to happen.” “We are doing all of this for our boys because we want to show them that you can have a dream and go for it,” she says. “Whatever your goal is, you can achieve it. It takes a lot of sacrifice, but it’s worth it.”

The Garcias aren’t the only Wakeland residents who are now on the road to homeownership. Hospital janitor Juan Vasquez, 63, came in to the CORE Program to figure out a plan for his retirement. After looking at his resources, it was determined he could afford to withdraw a significant portion of his 401k savings to purchase a mobile home in a senior community.​The CORE Program is just one of the many Resident Services offered at all of Wakeland’s communities that help residents achieve their financial, professional and personal goals. To learn more about Resident Services, click here.